Fonseka violated official secrets act: Report

December 15, 2009 15:54 IST

General Sarath Fonseka may have violated the official secrets act by accusing Sri Lankan Defence Secretary of ordering the killing of surrendering Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam leaders, a presidential legal adviser has said.

Sri Lankan President's counsel and legal expert Gomin Dayasir told media-persons that as the then Army Commander (Fonseka) had by that statement brought the entire Army and the nation into "ridicule". "The General had made a serious statement at a time the world was making allegations about war crimes", Dayasir said on Monday. Fonseka had by his statement to the Sunday Leader accusing the Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and then Brigadier Shavindra Silva of having executed some LTTE frontliners carrying white flags to surrender violated Section 6 (E) of the Official Secrets Act of 1955.

Dayasir pointed out that Fonseka in his capacity as a candidate aspiring to be a future president would certainly be called as a witness before such a War Tribunal if proceedings are initiated against Sri Lanka. Speaking on the occasion, senior attorney Kalinga Indatissa said Fonseka had no right to make such a serious statement on hearsay as stated by him to the newspaper. He pointed out that if Fonseka says he is misquoted in the newspaper, he should without any further delay correct that report.

When asked about his interview to Sunday Leader,Fonseka told PTI that he had been quoted out of context. Attorney-at-law Ali Sabri claimed that Fonseka had the habit of making such damaging statements from time to time and later to claim he was misquoted, a Sri Lankan official website said. Sabri referred to a report on minorities in the Canadian Post six months ago and how Fonseka claimed he was misquoted after six months of the publication, the government website said. Senior Attorney, Krishan De Alwis said that since Fonseka was now a civilian and had made that statement to the newspaper in that capacity, it is possible that he could be tried under the normal civil laws of the land, it said.